A Pop-Culture Podcast

Weekend Watch – 10/14/16

Welcome to the Weekend Watch. Where we try to point you towards the best ways to spend your viewing time (or, at least, steer you clear of the garbage).

Movies

The Accountant

Loren: It’s an interesting concept to have someone with OCD and clearly a detached temperament to be your criminal accountant and hitman. Couple that with this cast and I definitely want to check this one out.

RDT: Remember that scene in Good Will Hunting where Will is talking about maybe going to work for the government and he’s all “I do this and then that happens and that happens and that happens and blammo! Jimmy’s dead with a bullet to the head!” (I’m paraphrasing.) Well, this feels like a movie version of that. Regardless, I still really want to see it.

Rick: The trailer for this is in the running for my favorite of the year. I sincerely hope the film lives up to that first bit of advertising.

Kevin Hart: What Now?

Loren: Nah.

RDT: I don’t find Kevin Hart’s stand-up very funny. And I don’t find Kevin Hart’s movies very funny. So, a stand-up movie starring Kevin Hart? I’m out. But, based on his bits on Conan, he seems like he’d be fun to hangout with.

Rick: I honestly thought this was some kind of action movie parody until I read the logline for it. A lot of comedy concert films have had wrap-around devices, but this one goes above and beyond. I’m not a huge Kevin Hart fan to begin with, so the likelihood of me seeing this is low.

Max Steel

Loren: This looks like the bad version of that Power Rangers trailer that hit out of NYCC. I’m all good.

RDT: Some time, in the near future, I’m going to be sitting on my couch. It’ll be a Saturday, maybe Sunday, afternoon and I’ll be bored. I will not seek this out, but it will pop up on some kind of streaming feed. At that time, and not before, I will pop some popcorn, pour a glass of Crystal Light Fruit Punch, sit down and watch this movie.

Rick: Well, this certainly is a movie of some nature. I feel like this should have been a Disney Channel show instead of a full blown feature. Either way, unless I’m desperate to watch some sci-fi things blow up alongside awkward teen romance, this is a pass.

Desierto (Limited)

Loren: Interesting take on the horror genre, but it may be too politically charged to get it’s due.

RDT: Talk about a topic in the zeitgeist right now. I’m definitely intrigued. Unless the reviews are great, I don’t see myself running out to see it. But I’m sure I’ll catch it streaming.

Rick: There’s a missed opportunity to introduce the sound of the bear early on and have that be the “ticking clock” soundtrack for the rest of the trailer. Creative notes aside, despite my firey hatred for Gravity, I’ll still make a point to see something involving Alfonso Cuarón. Sign me up.

Certain Women (Limited)

Loren: Another very topical film. This time about how women are still being seen as lesser than by a large portion of men.

RDT: I could (snarkily) say how a movie called “Certain Women” probably isn’t for this certain man, but good is good. And this has me intrigued, to say the least. Such a great cast of, I feel, very underrated actors (even KStew). If it stays on my radar, I’m sure I’ll watch it streaming eventually.

Rick: There’s something very 70’s drama about this movie that tickles my fancy. That realistic feel of an Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore or Last Picture Show. Count me in.

Priceless (Limited)

Loren: Who the hell made this trailer? It starts out pretty ok with the down on his luck guy falling into a larger conspiracy trope. But it takes a hard right into Nicholas Sparks territory with that song at the end. Woof.

RDT: Again, a topic very much in the air right now. Those first few shots of the trailer are stunning. But it just didn’t grab me.

Rick: To echo Loren, WTF is with that song? Despite it’s just-above Lifetime movie aesthetics, I was willing to be forgiving. But that song…sheesh. So much nope.

Miss Hokusai (Limited)

Loren: I don’t know that I’ll see this but I can guarantee that The Lady’s roommate will. If anything it looks absolutely gorgeous.

RDT: I will add this to the growing list of foreign-born animated movies that I have to, but probably never will, see.

Rick: You get a few in the trailer, but I can’t wait to see the other artistic homages that are bound to show up in this movie.

Tower (Limited)

Loren: What a fascinating way to tell a documentary story. The story itself isn’t something I necessarily need to check out but I love the execution.

RDT: Animated documentary. Pretty interesting take on the genre. Maybe…?

Rick: A little bit of Waking Life’s aesthetic mixed with a technique that popped up in a documentary from earlier this year called Life, Animated. It’s an excellent way to fill in the visual gaps where you wouldn’t necessarily have an original film or video source. Doesn’t hurt that it’s a subject I’m genuinely interested in. Add it to the list.

Newtown (Limited)

Loren: I grew up two towns over from Newtown. I’ll never forget the day the Sandy Hook massacre happened. I don’t know that I need a documentary to remind me.

RDT: I made it 10 seconds into that trailer and stopped. While I acknowledge this is a topic worth exploring, it’s just not one I personally feel the need to revisit.

Rick: This doc is going to hurt my heart while I watch it, but that’s not going to deter me from taking the plunge.

The Red Pill (Limited)

Loren: Being not a cynical asshole, I love magic, but I can’t fathom how a single card trick will hold audiences for an entire documentary. That being said, that’s one hell of a trick.

RDT: I have no idea how a card trick deserves a documentary of its own, but I’m kind of excited to check it out. I mean, who doesn’t love magic??? Cynical assholes, that’s who.

Rick: I loooooove close up magic. It is genuinely one of my favorite things. I have a feeling this movie is going to pull back the curtain further than I would like. I still want to enjoy the beauty that is slight of hand without knowing how it’s actually done.

Being 17 (Limited)

Loren: A foreign, coming of age movie is not necessarily in my wheelhouse. I probably won’t see this.

RDT: I know I suck for saying this but…..if it’s good, I’ll see the American remake. If it’s not, it doesn’t matter.

Rick: I’ll take the bullet for both of you gents.

Do Not Resist (Limited)

Loren: I already have a growing fear of police and I’m a white male in my mid thirties. If it’s that bad for me, I can’t even imagine what it’s like for people who actually are having dealings with these new para-military police squads.

RDT: I guess this week we’re talking about ALL THE DOCUMENTARIES!!!!!! You know, I don’t know. Is it a topic worth exploring? Sure, yes. I’m just not sure it’s a topic worth me exploring.

Rick: The documentaries making the list are my fault. I’m just trying to broaden your horizons, RDT. I’m concerned about the escalating militarization of the police. It seems like the kind of shit that was going on in the 1960s, just turned up to 11. I pay attention to this topic when it hits the news, and I’m open to seeing more via this doc.

TV/Netflix/Blu-Ray

Mascots (Netflix)

Loren: The Netflix ad campaign didn’t do this justice. It didn’t even mention that it was a Christopher Guest joint. Now knowing that, you couldn’t stop me from watching this.

Rick: I’m waaaaay behind on my Christopher Guest. This will make my queue but I guarantee it won’t get watched right away.

Haters Back Off! – Season 1 (Netflix)

Loren: It’s like Napoleon Dynamite the series. That’s not a compliment.

RDT: I’ve seen a few of the YouTube vids (well, parts of a few), and her appearance on Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. It’s not an unfunny bit, I guess, but can it really sustain a season (or more) of tv? **shrugs**

Rick: No. Just…just no.

Goliath – Season 1 (Amazon)

Loren: Man, Perry Mason got dark. And he looks like shit.

RDT: Bad Lawyer?

Rick: This feels like a 40s detective story transported to modern day. Gimmie.

So that’s your upcoming weekend in review. Let us know what you saw, liked and/or hated.